The Detective's Trust (Brothers in Blue #2)

by K. Langston

  Mike only lived a couple of miles away. By the time we made it there, she’d accepted the fact that she wasn’t going with me.

  Well, somewhat.

  “Stop pouting,” I ordered before knocking on the door.

  Mike Holland was a country boy from Iowa who had been my partner for four years before we both went into different fields. He was now head of the Narcotics K-9 unit and one of the few people I trusted.

  “What’s up, brother?” Mike greeted, opening the door. His German Shepherd, Nitro, right by his side.

  “Hey, man. I really appreciate you helping me out.”

  “Anytime.”

  I’d given Mike the rundown early this morning when I called and asked him to look after my girl.

  My girl.

  “This is Cassidy Sky. Cass, Mike and Nitro.”

  She extended her hand. “So you’re the babysitter.”

  Mike grinned, shaking her hand. “You must be the brat.”

  Cassidy glared at me, but I didn’t give her a chance to stay angry. I pulled her into my arms and kissed her sweet lips.

  Resting my forehead to hers, she sighed. “How long will you be gone?”

  “I’ll be back this afternoon.”

  Her eyes held mine. “Promise?”

  “I promise.”

  I tightened my hold around her waist. I didn’t want to let her go. I knew she’d be safe here but not having her with me was going to drive me fucking crazy.

  “Behave yourself,” I said, finally releasing her but not before giving her one final kiss. Then I turned my attention back to Mike. “Don’t take your eyes off of her, got it?”

  “Got it.”

  “Oh, and, Mike.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Touch her and I’ll break your fucking fingers.”

  He laughed. “Wouldn’t even think of it.”

  After Reid had left, it didn’t take long for me to warm up to Mike. He was a pretty laidback guy, unlike Reid who was more intense, but both held an air of authority, one that screamed don’t fuck with me.

  Mike was more open than Reid in a lot of ways. I thought they probably made one hell of a team when they worked together and I was right. Over lunch, he’d shared stories of when he and Reid patrolled together. Some crazy, some really close calls, and some had me laughing until I cried. I found myself even more grateful that Reid had left Mike in charge of my care, it meant getting to know more of who Reid was now, and from someone who likely knew him better than anyone.

  “That old lady was a trip. You should have seen Cunningham’s face. It took everything I had to keep it together.”

  “Oh my God, are you serious?”

  “I shit you not. Whole trunk was full of dildos and stuff that still gives me fucking nightmares. And boy did she want Cunningham. That woman was on a mission. Kept telling him how handsome he was and what a nice ‘package’ he had.” He laughed harder, shaking his head. “We didn’t want to handcuff her at first, she was ninety-two years old, but when she started grabbing for his ass and dick we had no choice.”

  “That is the best story I’ve ever heard in my life.”

  “It was definitely a night I’ll never forget. We were rookies then so we caught hell for it. It was six months before we stopped finding granny panties in our squad car before each shift.”

  I chuckled. “That’s terrible.”

  “I miss it, you know, being out on the frontline.”

  Silently, I wondered if Reid missed it, too.

  He cleared his throat. “I’m sorry about your brother.”

  “Thanks. It’s been seven years but sometimes it feels like it was yesterday. It hurts like hell.”

  “I know what you mean. I lost my sister nine years ago.”

  “Oh my gosh, Mike, I’m so sorry.”

  “Drunk driver hit her on her way home from work. Thankfully, the piece of shit died, too. Otherwise, I would have gone to prison for killing him.”

  Mike and I were more alike than I thought.

  “That’s how I knew he’d lost someone close to him, the grief he carried around was hard to miss sometimes because I was carrying my own. But I never asked him about it. He only spoke of you and Bodie in passing, but I could tell he cared about you both. It wasn’t until he called me yesterday that I even knew the full extent of what happened.”

  Tears began to fill my eyes, the lump in my throat growing more painful with every word I spoke. “I just wish he would let me in.”

  He shrugged. “We’re men. We like to keep shit buried. It’s just the way it is.”

  A sad smile curved my lips. “Well, sometimes you men suck.”

  “Sometimes,” he agreed. “And sometimes we lick, too.”

  I laughed as my heavy heart became lighter. “Better watch yourself, Officer, Reid might think you’re flirting with me.”

  He grunted. “I can take his ass any day.”

  Smiling, I asked, “Do you have someone, Mike?”

  Pain flickered in his eyes before he turned his attention to Nitro. “I did once. Gave up everything to follow her to L.A. so she could pursue her dream of acting.”

  “What happened?”

  “She made it all right. Slept her way right to the top.”

  I winced. “I’m sorry.”

  “I was bitter for a long time. But then I realized that it wasn’t me who lost her. She lost me. And if I don’t mind saying so, I’m a damn good catch.”

  “Do you ever want to settle down?”

  “Well, yeah. If I ever find the perfect girl.”

  “And what’s your version of the perfect girl?”

  “Oh, I don’t know, a woman who likes to drink beer and fuck a lot.”

  I shook my head, laughing. Mike was a trip.

  “All right, I’m just kidding. Kinda. Those are important things too but I guess the biggest thing is I want someone who’s loyal. Being married to a cop ain’t easy. I need someone I can trust to leave at home and not have to worry about if she’ll be there waiting for me when I get off. A woman who wants kids and a family but still thinks it’s important to take care of her man, too.” Nitro lifted his head with a low groan. Mike laughed and rubbed a hand over his neck. “Oh, and someone who is willing to love this big baby.”

  My heart warmed and ached all at the same time.

  “Well trust me, Mike, we exist. I would wait for Reid every night if I needed to, and I know I’m not the only one. There are a lot of women out there who would be lucky to have a good man like you.”

  “I’m a man who knows what he wants. And for some reason, the women I’ve met don’t seem to understand that. They say I’m too honest. That I move too fast because I’m upfront about what I want. But I don’t see the need in wasting time together if we’re not on the same page from the beginning. And I’m tired of chasing down ass every night.”

  I wondered just how much chasing he actually had to do. Mike was a good-looking guy. A giant compared to most, he was tall and lean with a ruggedness to him that was so alluring. You could tell he’d seen things. Things no one in their right mind would ever want to see. But there was a softness to him, too. It was obvious his heart was much bigger than his ego, though I believed it didn’t suffer much.

  “You know, Mike, I think I may have the perfect girl for you.”

  He leaned forward, curiosity sparking in his green eyes. “I’m listening.”

  “My roommate, Max. She’s kind of a homebody, but she loves to cook, loves animals, and writes about sex.”

  “What do you mean she writes about sex?”

  “She’s a romance author.”

  “And she writes about sex?”

  “She writes about other stuff too but with lots of sex.”

  “A woman with an imagination, now that’s an ass I’d chase,” he said with a wink.

  “Only one condition if I’m going to hook you up, Mike.”

  He grinned. “Anything.”

  “You have to promise not to break
her heart.”

  “Darlin’, if she’s everything you just described, I pray like hell she doesn’t break mine.”

  I was on my way to meet the point of contact for the bust when Ryder called me with bad news.

  “What the fuck do you mean it’s empty?”

  “By the time our team arrived, there was nothing there. Someone must have tipped them off.”

  “What about the Intel?”

  “They were sent on a self-destructing hard drive. Motherfucker shut down our whole system. Thank God we had Oakley though. He’s working to restore it now and can hopefully salvage at least some of that data.”

  “Now what?”

  “We need to find Krull Karter. We don’t think he is involved with any of his father’s dealings but he may know where Dante is. We think he might have left the country.”

  “Let me take care of that.” It’s time Krull and I had it out once and for all.

  It should have happened a long time ago.

  “Last known address is Chicago but phone records show he’s been in Vegas for the last week.”

  Vegas was only four hours from me.

  “Shoot me the address.”

  “Coming your way now.”

  What should have taken me four hours took me only three and a half. When I arrived there were at least a dozen cars parked in the circular driveway of the address Ryder had given me. Pulling to a stop behind a white Audi, I got out and made my way to the front door.

  Rage and bitterness consumed me as I approached. I hadn’t seen Krull in years. I didn’t like him then and I really wasn’t looking forward to seeing him now.

  I pounded on the door and waited.

  A blonde wearing nothing but a floral bikini answered the door. “Can I help you?”

  “I’m looking for Krull Karter. Is he here?”

  Her gaze drifted up and down my body. “Who’s asking?”

  “LAPD,” I stated, holding up my badge.

  That wiped the desire and curiosity right off of her face. “Wait right here.” She closed the door.

  A few seconds later Karter returned, looking exactly the same as I remembered. Dark skin. Black hair. Cold, hard eyes. The only difference between now and then was I hated him more for killing my best friend and putting Cassidy in danger, and that only fueled my heated blood.

  His lip curled in disgust. “You’re a little out of your jurisdiction, don’t cha think?”

  Seeing him again resurrected so many bad memories, and with it came an onslaught of regret. I should have tried harder to keep Bodie away from him.

  Maybe if I had tried harder, he would still be alive.

  “Need to ask you a few questions.”

  He cocked himself against the frame of the door, his confidence pissing me off. “As in?”

  “Did your father hire Vinny to kill Bodie?

  He laughed and my patience snapped. I threw him up against the door, pressing my forearm to his throat.

  “I could have your job for this. You have no idea who you’re fucking with,” he said.

  “No, it’s me you don’t want to fuck with. Answer the goddamn question.”

  “I’m not telling you shit. I don’t owe you a goddamn thing.”

  “You fucking owe Bodie. He trusted you. He thought you were his friend and you sold him out.”

  “No, he sold himself out. I didn’t make him do anything he didn’t want to do. I tried to warn him he was in too deep but he wouldn’t listen. The stubborn motherfucker wouldn’t listen to anyone.”

  Well at least we could both agree on that.

  “You can blame me all you want but the bottom line is Bodie did this to himself. He made a choice. There were consequences.”

  I landed a fist across his nose. The bone cracked beneath the blow, blood splattering across my gray shirt. “You don’t breathe a word about him. You have no fucking right. Now tell me where your father is.”

  “What the fuck, dude?” he garbled. “You broke my nose.”

  Fisting the back of his head, I gave his hair a hard yank. “Good. It’s only a fraction of the pain I’m going to inflict if you don’t start talking.”

  I released him with a shove and he stumbled backward. “I’m not telling you shit, you fucking pig.”

  “One way or another, we will find him, and when I do, the pain I deliver will be far worse than this.”

  He spat a wad of blood at my feet, a sadistic grin taking over his face that made my gut flare with suspicion. “Yeah, you go find him, pretty sure you won’t be disappointed in what or shall I say, who you find, Detective.”

  My heart raced as I pulled into the driveway. I barely had it in park when I bailed out, Cassidy’s cries for help still crawling around in my head, squeezing my heart in agony.

  “Cassidy!” I called out as I bounded up the steps. “Cass, where are you? Talk to me.”

  Nothing could have prepared me for what I found on the other side of that door. Air froze in my chest, making my lungs feel like iron.

  Blood.

  So much fucking blood.

  And body parts…everywhere. My eyes darted around the room but once I caught a glimpse of Bodie’s favorite shirt, my worse fear had been realized. I turned away, nausea stirring in my gut. I reached out to steady myself against the wall, trying not to lose my shit.

  “Cassidy!”

  Please let her be okay.

  Please let her be okay.

  “Gidge!” My voice came out raw and shaky. I hardly recognized it as my own. Her sobbing finally penetrated the pounding blood rushing through my ears. It sounded like it was coming from the hall closet. Opening the door, I switched on the light and my chest flooded with relief when I found her huddled in the far corner, pale face soaked with tears.

  I held my arms open, tears stinging my eyes at her distraught state. “Come here.” Without hesitation, she scrambled from her place on the floor and crawled into my lap, clinging to me, body trembling with fear. “Shh…it’s okay. You’re okay.”

  “B—B—Bodie.” She was in shock; I squeezed my eyes shut, praying she hadn’t looked outside of this closet. That she hadn’t seen what I’d just seen.

  I pressed my lips to her forehead, holding her close while I stroked her back. “Is he—is he dead?”

  All I could do was nod my head against hers, the words lodged in my throat like a rusty knife.

  The sounds that came from her destroyed me, rocked me to my fucking core. It was a sound that would haunt my dreams for the rest of my life.

  I sat up in bed, my entire body soaked with sweat. Blinking several times, I tried to erase the images that continued to flash through my mind, the remnants of my dream still vivid and real.

  Seeing Krull yesterday brought back a lot of old memories, and the guilt that accompanied them was nearly unbearable. Krull’s final words had left me confused and with an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. I couldn’t put my finger on what it was, but it was driving me fucking crazy.

  Then there was Cassidy.

  After I picked her up from Mike’s, she’d sensed my frustration, and once again, she’d been exactly what I’d needed. There were no questions, only understanding, and it terrified me to know she had that much control over me. That she could quiet the storm that raged inside of me. With nothing more than my lips upon hers, she made me feel so damn much.

  She shifted next to me, placing a hand on my damp shoulder. “Baby, are you okay?”

  I didn’t answer.

  There was no way I could talk to her about this. Hell, she was still struggling with it herself, and every day we spent together was another reminder of what we’d both lost.

  Pushing from the bed, I walked into the bathroom and closed the door, flipping on the water before pushing down my sweat pants. Once the water was warm, I stepped under the hot spray and closed my eyes; doing everything I could to wash the memories away. I was lost in my head, swimming in a sea of pain and regret, when I felt her hand softly touch my b
ack.

  I slowly turned around, her small hands reaching up to cradle my face. “Baby, please. Talk to me.”

  Her eyes pleaded with mine, begging for an explanation, but my need for her to take it all away overpowered everything else. I captured her mouth, lifting her up so she could wrap her legs around me, then I turned and pressed her against the wall.

  Dropping my forehead to hers, I centered myself, bringing her down hard on my ready cock.

  Her grateful gasp feathered my lips.

  And just like that, the storm calmed inside of me. The waves settling more and more each time I slid in and out of her tight, wet heat. She clung to me, her gaze locked with mine, and I saw everything I wish I could give her staring right back at me.

  Trust.

  Love.

  It was killing me inside, along with everything else. She’d given herself to me completely and I’d selfishly let her, even when I promised myself I wouldn’t. But just as the ocean always come back to kiss the shore, no matter how many times it’s pulled away, I could never resist her.

  The next day we went back to the house and began cleaning up. Not much was salvageable and the majority of the things that were destroyed weren’t even mine, they were my lieutenant’s.

  Thankfully, I had renter’s insurance. I’d spent forty-five minutes on the phone with them before I was finally able to hang up. Then I went in search of Cassidy and found her outside talking to my neighbor Reef.

  “’Sup, bro?” Reef said in a slow drawl. He was a pothead surfer who lived next door. “Just chatting it up with your girl here. She’s hella fine yo. How’d a straight dude like you end up with a cool girl like her?”

  “Luck, I guess.”

  “Luck is right,” he said, dragging his eyes up and down her small frame. I liked Reef. He never got in my business and kept to himself for the most part. But right now I wanted to kick his ass for looking at Cassidy that way. “Your girl here tells me she knows how to rip some waves,” he said to me then turned his attention back to her. “Me and my boys are gonna be heading out to catch some waves soon. I have an extra board if you wanna come.”

  Cassidy smiled. “I would love to.”